Davelaw wrote:and I'm way on the other end of the spectrum being on the verge of total Iconoclism; when I go inside my ex's MS Lutheran; I freak out when I see all the statues: angels with swords, sinners in chains

as aside-my ex's Missouri Synod church really doesn't fit your description at all-they are more like High Church Baptists that happen to infant Baptize and sing hymns in german.

Hmmm, ya don't say? Well, admittedly, my experience with churches of that branch of Lutheranism is pretty limited, total of three I've been inside and several others described to me by a MS pastor's daughter who was a student of mine years ago.

The one in my old hometown was really very similar to the Catholic. The interior wasn't as elaborate, but the service order was nearly identical with many of the same prayers. Of course, when I was growing up, ours were in Latin and theirs definitely weren't.

My impression may be off; but it seems they use their confirmation process in way similiar to our weekly altar call to 'press for an individual commitment to Jesus Christ.

Davelaw wrote:and I'm way on the other end of the spectrum being on the verge of total Iconoclism; when I go inside my ex's MS Lutheran; I freak out when I see all the statues: angels with swords, sinners in chains

Meant to add that I can understand your freaking.

My paternal grandparents had a sizable picture of the Sacred Hearts of both Jesus and Mary, images side-by-side and really pretty drippy-gruesome, hanging above the sideboard in their farmhouse kitchen when I was a kid. You really didn't want to look at that while trying to eat dinner! There was a much larger one of Jesus in Grandma's bedroom over her bed. I'm still amazed she managed to sleep decently after praying while looking at that equally gruesome one. Not that the hearts in those pictures looked like an actual human heart. They looked more like a meaty Valentine one wrapped with thorns and dripping blood. Just yukky!

I remember walking into a church in Colorado once behind a couple one of whom was carrying a young boy. The kid saw the statue of St. Stephen and freaked, started screaming and pointing at it so that it was pretty evident that's what set him off. Couldn't blame him, actually. The depictions of that saint are typically gross, as full of arrows as a pincushion and oftentimes liberally decorated with blood.

It's really no wonder that Protestants decided statues were idolatrous. Probably partially a self-protective reaction on the part of those who'd shuddered at gory statues before they broke away from the Catholic church.

It's really no wonder that Protestants decided statues were idolatrous. Probably partially a self-protective reaction on the part of those who'd shuddered at gory statues before they broke away from the Catholic church.

Could be: I think its more of a return to the original Iconoclasm of the OT.

My paternal grandparents had a sizable picture of the Sacred Hearts of both Jesus and Mary, images side-by-side and really pretty drippy-gruesome, hanging above the sideboard in their farmhouse kitchen when I was a kid. You really didn't want to look at that while trying to eat dinner! There was a much larger one of Jesus in Grandma's bedroom over her bed. I'm still amazed she managed to sleep decently after praying while looking at that equally gruesome one. Not that the hearts in those pictures looked like an actual human heart. They looked more like a meaty Valentine one wrapped with thorns and dripping blood. Just yukky!

Now you are in my neck of the woods. My grandmother had the Sacred heart of Jesus, and one of Mary in the living room. Three pictures all together. For years. One day one of the three pictures was gone, she had given one away. On one side of my family , at least those I actually know are Catholic. I have a protestant wing, but I am sadly not in touch with them. (I don't know where they are)

I remember when I was 6 or 8 years old, my Mother brought about nine different relatives different 3-d religious pictures, one was of the crucifixion (sp?) It was gory.

She was not interested in the images, but she knew the family would be, and they were pleased. It is odd, because they are the gentlest sweetest people. All were quite elderly.

I have to say, although not interested in the religious practices. I do love the old Churches, they are beautiful.

Last edited by MaineCaptain on Tue Oct 26, 2010 6:09 pm; edited 1 time in total (Reason for editing : need to clarify something)

I love the historic New England protestant churches. The white ones with steeples....I love the simplicity of them.

My mother converted to Catholicism several years ago (can you guess how happy that made my Baptist family?? LOL). She now has one of those pictures on her wall with the bleeding hearts of Jesus and Mary, too. It's kinda freaky looking, I have to say.

_________________Be the kind of woman that when your feet hit the floor in the morning, the devil says, "Crap, she's up!"

A government big enough to give you everything you want, is strong enough to take everything you have. -- Thomas Jefferson

sacrificialgoddess wrote:Brick buildings that look like they are offices. Or storefronts. Store fronts are very popular here. And warehouses.

Haven't noticed nearly as many of those weird storefront ones here as we had in Wichita. There blissfully aren't many at all of the Praise Jesus Washed In the Blood of the Lamb Sanctified By Grace Bible Blessed Churches in St. L. I've seen one or two with names half that long, but that's it.

I think it's something to do with that part of the country, SG. The little bitty town where I lived before moving to Wichita had TWO storefront churches, peculiarly founded by two people who'd left the same denominational fundamentalist church. The church they'd been in wasn't fundamental enough for either from what I heard.

As for building style, I was not at all fond of the new building the Wichita UU's put up. It looked like a Monopoly house with a cereal box laid flat alongside it. Stark. I honestly considered quitting the church, that building was so blazin' UGLY.

Beribee wrote:Really? I think I've only seen one or two that were storefronts. We have one other that looks like a really fancy office building.....but almost all of the others look like regular churches.

I'd guess a lot more New England churches are historic buildings than you find in the Plains States. ????

Are there many pastor-founded cultish churches up there? Lots of those in the central U.S., a good many of which locate in office buildings or warehouses. Cheap to lease, I suspect.

Once they get larger, then they tend to move into a building a more mainstream church has vacated.

We've got storefront churches around here, too. They are new churches that have split from the older ones and if they do well they move into churches that sell their buildings. Some do build the warehouse style buildings though. A few churches have taken over old strip malls so they can have stores as well. They are the ones that have their own ATMs.

_________________Live a good life. If there are gods and they are just, then they will not care how devout you have been, but will welcome you based on the virtues you have lived by. If there are gods, but unjust, then you should not want to worship them. If there are no gods, then you will be gone, but will have lived a noble life that will live on in the memories of your loved ones. Marcus Aurelius

DotNotInOz wrote: Stark. I honestly considered quitting the church, that building was so blazin' UGLY.

My mother will be leaving the church she's been part of for over thirty years because of that exact thing. The former church burned a couple of years ago. (Well, the main sanctuary and old sanctuary congolerate building. The other buildings on the property were untouched.) Instead of building on the existing property, some members pushed to buy new property across town by the new WalMart building and they're now putting up a church that looks like corporate office space for a not-very-imaginative company. Mother won't be attending at the new building--she wants to attend a church, not an office. She's been looking at other churches to attend for a few months, now.

I know what your mother's feeling, AT. I have driven out of my way to attend church in another parish because I positively HATE those ugly round churches.Some of them are beautiful, unfortunately, too many are not. So far, I've only seen one that I liked. I realize the mass is the same, no matter where it is...But, it's hard to sit in a building I hate and enjoy anything. It's distracting.